The logjam of clubs fighting for the sixth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot remained just that in Week 26 of the Major League Soccer season. The Chicago Fire were among those to improve their standing, taking all three points against New York Red Bulls in a midweek fixture, then battling one of their prime competitors in the table, Orlando City SC, to a road draw Saturday.Three teams -- Montreal Impact, New York City FC and Philadelphia Union -- went without a point on the week.
Frank Yallop’s team has gone from seemingly out of the mix to within two points of the playoffs. They’ve got a game in hand on the sixth-place team, Orlando City. After a performance over the weekend in which he characterized his players as “a little bit weary,” Yallop hopes the break will allow the Fire to enjoy the same type of success against Montreal Saturday (7 p.m. CT, CSN Chicago) as it did in a 3-0 win on May 30.
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“We’re just going into this game the way we did against New York Red Bulls at home, which is a real solid unit high up the field that run the ball back,” Yallop said Monday. “We’ve had a week of rest to do that, and I feel once we set up and we’ve got plenty of time to work with the guys -- because there’s going to be some new players stepping in -- we’re going to be OK.”
Lineup changes are inevitable with a trio of starters -- Matt Polster, Joevin Jones and David Accam -- away on international duty. The absence of Polster and Jones makes outside back a position that needs addressing, and Yallop expects to settle on a starting outside duo in the near future. Patrick Doody, who started three matches earlier this season, has returned from his latest loan spell to Saint Louis FC, while Lovel Palmer and Greg Cochrane remain viable options as well.
Yallop is spending his time considering lineup questions like those rather than the issues currently confronting this week's opponent. With the Impact winless in their last six matches across all competitions, Chicago Fire Ring of Fire member and former head coach Frank Klopas was relieved of his head coaching duties in Montreal late Saturday night, replaced by interim head coach Mauro Biello. Yallop said on Monday he was disappointed to hear the news but feels it won’t influence Chicago's approach to Saturday’s contest.
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“It’s always a sad time when any coach gets fired,” Yallop said of Klopas. “He tries his best, and he wears his heart on his sleeve. It’s a sad time, but for us as a club, we go in there with the same thoughts and mindset that Frank is there or is not there. We’re playing the players, not the coach. For us to not worry about what’s going on in Montreal, we’ve got to worry about ourselves and be prepared for their best.”
Chicago will be without some key players against the Impact, but it goes both ways. The Impact will miss Laurent Ciman, Ambroise Oyongo, Johan Venegas and Eric Miller, who all were called up to their respective national teams.
Yallop said he’s hoping that a full team effort can overcome several individual absences, and that the last couple games could be an indication of what’s to come.
“We’re hoping that the little bit of momentum in the last league games we’ve had can carry us through,” Yallop said. “Our guys are dying to play. We’re missing some good individual players and hoping collectively we can get the job done in Montreal.”
